The Best TV Shows of 2018

The golden age of television continued in 2018, with dozens of new shows breaking the boundaries of diversity, representation, and storytelling. Gripping dramas like Sharp Objects and The Haunting of Hill House brought the intensity while new seasons of The Good Place, Schitt's Creek, and The Big Bang Theory brought much-needed moments of levity. Our picks for the top shows of 2018 touch on all the reasons why we love TV: to cry, to feel, to think, and sometimes, just to escape. Vanderpump Rules is perfect for the last one.

So, below, see the Glamour team's selections for the best TV shows of the year.

Bodyguard

If I had a dollar for every time I recommended the new Netflix series Bodyguard to a friend (or a complete stranger), I could comfortably retire. There are three things that make this BBC original great: The engrossing plot line, the A-plus cast, and most importantly, lead actor Richard Madden’s chiseled jawline. (His Scottish accent doesn’t hurt, either.) The six-episode series will keep you glued ‘til the end, so buckle up and cancel your plans. You’re going to need a day to recover from this one. — Jennifer Lance, assistant editor

American Horror Story: Apocalypse

My two favorite AHS seasons (Coven and Murder House) combined into one? Yes, please! The thing about Apocalypse is that it ties up so many loose ends into a pretty, bloody package. Any mysteries about Coven and Murder House are fully resolved. Plus, we have a new demonic storyline—co-starring Joan Collins—to sink our teeth into. What more could you want? — Michelle Sulcov, senior visuals editor

Queer Eye

Netflix’s Queer Eye reboot is, by far, my favorite show of 2018. The feel-good series isn't just about makeovers: It teaches valuable lessons about love and acceptance. It’s truly remarkable watching the Fab 5 (Antoni Porowski, Tan France, Karamo Brown, Bobby Berk, and Jonathan Van Ness) face uncomfortable situations and still remain gracious and empathetic. The cultural conversations around Queer Eye are more important than ever, given the state of things. The show, overall, is a helpful reminder to be kind to each other, no matter what our beliefs. — Azadeh Valanejad, video producer

Killing Eve

BBC gave us an amazing show this year about a female assassin, Villanelle (Jodie Comer), and the female detective, Eve Polastri (Sandra Oh), who's obsessed with finding her. Oh certainly deserves the Golden Globe nomination she received this year for the show, but I demand justice for Jodie Comer’s snub. Comer plays a horrible, murderous sociopath and yet you can’t help but like her. She has the range! Both actresses put their all into the roles and deserve more love. — Khaliha Hawkins, digital administrative assistant

Chilling Adventures of Sabrina

Just when Riverdale became too absurd to keep up with, Chilling Adventures of Sabrina dropped on Netflix to fill my teen-melodrama void. Sabrina Spellman’s 2018 update has it all: Noir fashion, spooky witchcraft, and lots of hot guys. Her journey to decide between becoming a full witch and staying among her human friends has its loose ends, and the horror element was stronger than I expected. (If you haven’t watched yet, be warned: You’ll want to keep the lights on.) But of all the nostalgia-fueled reboots to grace small screens in 2018, I thought Sabrina was the most original. — Halie LeSavage, fashion features assistant

Homecoming

Homecoming made it official: I still want to be Julia Roberts when I grow up. I didn’t listen to the podcast, so I knew relatively nothing about the show before I started watching, save for the fact that it starred Julia Roberts. Two episodes in, however, I was hooked. Of course, Roberts is a revelation, and each 30-ish minute episode comes together to build a perfectly-paced and shocking puzzle of a TV show. — Melissa Haney, digital analytics manager

The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel

Rachel Brosnahan is going to have to get a bigger apartment. As long as The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel is on the air, the Emmy, Golden Globe and Critics Choice winner will have to find more space for all the (much-deserved) awards coming her way. Her portrayal of stand-up comedian and Upper West Side divorcee Midge Maisel is pure magic. Season two of the Amazon Prime series launched earlier this month, so if your entire holiday break isn’t spent watching (or re-watching) the adventures of Midge, Susie, and Co., then we’re going to be doing a lot of kvetching. — Jessica Radloff, west coast editor

You

For a book that I actually returned on my Audible account (it was so creepy), I was surprised when I became addicted to its television adaptation. This Gossip Girl meets Pretty Little Liars tale centers on a bookstore clerk (Penn Badgley) who becomes unhealthily obsessed with a girl named Beck (Elizabeth Lail). Fans of those aforementioned shows will love the cast and themes here. More importantly, though, they'll love the addictive twists and turns. Dan Humphrey is shaking. — Michelle Sulcov, senior visuals editor

Vanderpump Rules

Vanderpump Rules manages to pull off something very few series can: Somehow, this reality show about L.A. influencers is seven seasons in and still compelling as ever. Where else would a fight that involves an aspiring DJ screaming “It’s not about the pasta!” feel like a compelling Shakespearean-level drama? Your fave critically-acclaimed Emmy-winning series could never. Also, Rihanna loves Vanderpump Rules, and who are you to argue with Rihanna? — Anna Moeslein, senior editor

The Haunting of Hill House

As a horror fan, I was skeptical going into episode one of the insanely-overhyped The Haunting of Hill House. Was it as terrifying as everyone said? Were people actually vomiting because they were so scared? I don't know about that, but what I do know is, yes, this 10-episode Netflix series is a bone-chilling exploration of the ghosts we battle every day with our families. Some of those ghosts are in our heads—and others are under our beds. I'm not sure which one is more frightening. — Christopher Rosa, entertainment staff writer

Sharp Objects

By now everyone has heard of HBO’s limited series Sharp Objects, starring Amy Adams. She plays Camille Preaker, a journalist who goes back to her small town to cover the murders of two young girls in the area. Adams made me cry more times than I can count during this show, but Patricia Clarkson, who plays her mother, and Eliza Scanlen, who plays her younger sister, are constant scene-stealers. The very last scene of the show is the best scene of any TV show all year. — Khaliha Hawkins, digital administrative assistant

Big Bang Theory

The Big Bang Theory was hit or miss in season 11, but season 12—its last—is firing on all cylinders. Sheldon and Amy have never been more fun to watch as they navigate married life and professional highs and lows. (I never thought I’d be interested in Super-Asymmetry, but here I am.) Penny admitted to a heartbroken Leonard that she may never want kids, only furthering my point that Kaley Cuoco and Johnny Galecki haven't received the individual critical acclaim they deserve for these characters. And Raj got engaged to Anu in the fastest coupling since Ariana Grande and Pete Davidson. If the first half of Big Bang is any indication, it’s going to be one hell of a ride before the series finale in May. — Jessica Radloff, west coast editor

Succession

This sleeper hit has it all: greed, money, power, sex, drugs. While I was late to the party on this one, I binge-watched it all in one weekend and was hooked. The show follows the f'ed-up dynamics of a fabulously wealthy media family whose empire is up for grabs. Every character on the show is downright evil—from rom-com favorite Nicholas Braun (you'll remember him from The Perks of Being a Wallflower) and Macaulay Culkin's incredible brother, Kieran—and you love them even more from it. But what this show really teaches you is that money truly doesn't buy you happiness, because as rich as this motley crew is, they're miserable as hell. — Samantha Leach, assistant editor

The Good Place

While many (pats self on back) have been on that Good Place train since the show premiered in 2016, it feels like the Kristen Bell and Ted Danson-led show has captured more of the zeitgeist in its third season. It tackles existential philosophical questions about the human experience and the afterlife while still managing to stay hilarious and fun. That’s quite a feat. The writing is wickedly sharp and the entire cast (including Jameela Jamil, D’Arcy Corden, William Jackson Harper, and Manny Jacinto) is beyond charming. Come for the moral self-questioning; stay for the food puns.
— Abby Gardner, contributing writer/editor

Sorry For Your Loss

I get it: When you already have Netflix, Amazon, Hulu, and seemingly every other streaming platform on the planet, a series airing on Facebook Watch will inevitably initiate an eye roll or two. But trust me, taking the minimal effort to find this show (and it really is minimal!) is worth it. Elizabeth Olsen is phenomenal as a young woman grieving the death of her husband. Grief notwithstanding, the tight, 30-minute series brings other often taboo topics such as mental health and race to the forefront, and somehow manages to punch you in the gut while making you smile and immediately click on the next episode. — Caitlin Brody, entertainment editor

Schitt's Creek

My parents aren’t usually ahead of the pop culture curve. So when they started talking about a comedy called Schitt’s Creek—in which a wealthy family loses all of their assets except for a town the patriarch bought as a joke called, you guessed it, Schitt’s Creek—I mostly ignored them. Mom and Dad wouldn’t give up on me, though, and after months of shaming in the family group text I finally caved in to catching up. I sheepishly texted my parents during the first episode, where the Rose family vacates their Trump Tower-looking mansion and moves into a motel in their new town: “You’re right—this is funny.” I had a lot of ground to cover (the show premiered in 2015 and is currently in its fourth season, all streaming on Netflix), but it’s worth the marathon to get up to speed. Come for the meme-able one-liners stay for the Arrested Development family slapstick. My only regret about watching this year is that I hadn’t started sooner. — Halie LeSavage, fashion features editor

The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story

Darren Criss won every award imaginable for his portrayal of Gianni Versace's assassin, Andrew Cunanan. And they were well-deserved. Overall, The Assassination of Gianni Versace made for a spellbinding follow-up to 2016's The People v. O.J. Simpson. Watch this one as soon as you can. — Christopher Rosa, entertainment staff writer

Patriot Act with Hasan Minhaj

From Daily Show alumnus Hasan Minhaj comes this hilarious weekly news/comedy show on Netflix that offers the most on-point commentaries about politics, global affairs, and culture at large, with always-incredible references to basketball and sneaker culture thrown in, for good measure. Minhaj is a voice of reason in this bonkers 24/7 news cycle. — Ana Colón, digital fashion editor